The lyrically noir adventures of Montana private investigator C.W. Sughrue continue with this addition to a long-running series. Sughrue is reluctant to take on the case offered him by his friend Dr. William MacKinderick, a fellow player on his softball team. But a fee of 20 grand dispels his reservations, and he agrees to discover who stole seven patient files from the psychiatrist's office. Naturally, the trail turns out to be dirty and bloody.